The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-10-11

becoming proud in his own heart and
supposlng himself to be the pillar which
upheld the Church of Christ.
1t IS said that Oliver Cowdery once
said to the Prophet Joseph; "If
should leave this church, it would fall
and go to pieces" Joseph answered
him: "Oliver. you try IT," And Oliver
did try 1t; bnt what was the result? Did
the ship go down because one of its of
ticers saw fit to jump over board7 Did
the train cease to speed onward, be-
cause one of the, men placed there to
help manage it, chose to throw himself
from the train? The answer is here
to-day, in the presence of this mighty
congregation. representing the church
and kingdom of Gcd, from which
Brother Oliver saw fit to withdraw. He
went to pieces, or would have done so g.,
utterly, had he not come back at the
eleventh hour, repenting.in sackcloth
aud ashes, and asking humble forgive
ness of the Power he had offended.
| Thus it is with all men who think
that, by their detection, by their falling
away, the kingdom of God will go
down. Such men seem To forget that
| the word of One who never lied, has
been pledged that this work shall stand
| forever; and though all nations 90 10
| pieces and are broken ssunder. that thus
kingdom which God has established on
| the earth in tiliS The dispensation of the
fullneSs of times, is destined to endure
until he comes, whose right Is it to
reign.
From time to time the Lord will
bring changes and vicissitudes to bear
| upon His people, to sift them as wheat,
| and 10 blow away all that Is not wheat.
And in every change and. cir
cumstance through which the church
has passed during the ffty-seven years
of its existence, GOD has had in view The
ton of His people.
The command to gather at Kirkland
in early days, and to consecrate their
| monies for the building of the House of
God, was one test: and it proved too
much for some. They were the chaff
and not the wheat, and were blown
! from the threshing-hoor at the very
starting Of the mill.
The command to gather to Missouri
was another, test, and lingering back in
Kirkland were Latter-day Saints once
firm in faith, but not having sufficient
left to follow the church and the
Prophet of God unto the land of Zion.
Then came the persecution in Mis-
souri,, in Jackson County. and after
wards at Far West; and many fell
away, unable to endure the fiery ordeal
through which God had ordained they
should pass, that they might prove
their integrity to Him in His cause
They who were faithful. they who had
endured the test, gathered to Nauvo u
And there again they were put
| through the mill of publication, and
many apostatized; their faith tried in
one way and another.
Then came the great march of the
| children of Israel in modern times
across the mighty plains, and their set
| Element in these valleys, and hundreds
and thousands, whose faith was too
weak to meet such an ordeal, to face
the prospect of starvation, and de-
struction at the hands of wild beasts
and savages in the wilderness, fell
away, hundreds and thousands of them
| but the humble and faithful reached
the Rocky Mountains,
| Thus, from time to time, has the
| Almighty put his people through those
processes which are destined to purify
them and make them strong, a faith
full, a powerful, humble and God
fearing people.
| l regard the times through which we
are now passing as only another test, to
show who will cling to the old ship Zion
and pull through the storms with her,
and who will jump overheard, fearing
the ship will go down and thus put an
end to themselves in one way, through
fear of being destroyed in another.
It is day to walk by faith a day that
will test the integrity of the Latter-day
Saints. 1t is day to regard small things
| n ~ Il than
ingly weak and humble, and allow our
minds to be drawn unto the things of
the world, which seem to the worldly
minded great, by comparison, with the
things of the kingdom of God. He has
hid his truths as diamonds in the dust
They lie at the feet of the proud world.
which is gazing at the far-of horizon
and on the lofty skies, and overlooking
and neglecting the precious things that
are lying right below.
| 1t is day for this nation and for all
nations to the humble, for humility is a
| sign of greatness; and not despise the
| loWly Latter-Tay Saints and their tes-
timony; for God will vindicate the
words spoken here to-day, as he vindi-
Gated the words of the Prophet Noah
and all his prophets in ali ages; and the
world will yet see that the few can be
right and the many can be wrong.
testify in the fear of God and in the
name of Jesus Christ, that this is the
kingdom foretold by Daniel, that was
to be set up IN the latter Gays, never
more to be thrown down. And though
these may seem the days of weakness,
they will be followed by the
days of strength. For fifty seven
years the. church has been kicked
and buffeted about the werld as
football; but as the Lord lives, a
change is at handI The line will soon be
drawn. The shadows,wlll be dispelled,
aud the Sun will rise and fill the world
with glory. These are the days-or the
dark hours that precede the dawn.
The Lord will bring to pass His pur-
poses for His own honor. and glory
and the salvation and exsltatioL of all
who wait for Him.
May the Lord bless you, my brethren
and sisters, may he strengthen our
faith, that We may be among those
who will endure to the end and be saved
in the kingdom of God. Amen
APOSTLE 2. D. RICHARDS
next addressed the congregation, and
said: